Kivalliq mayors worried about landfills, mental health

"The hamlets are concerned”

Here's an aerial look at Rankin Inlet's landfill, which like others in the Kivalliq region, needs work. (PHOTO BY JANE GEORGE)

Kivalliq mayors want action from the Government of Nunavut on their landfill sites, which will soon overflow.

That was among the issues that came up at the Kivallilq region mayors meeting held in Rankin Inlet Sept. 18 to Sept. 20, with Lorne Kusugak, Nunavut’s minister of Community and Government Services in attendance.

But most Kivalliq landfills are the same ones that have been there since the communities were established 50 years ago, he said.

“It’s an issue that needs to be dealt with and it’s not going to go away,” Kusugak said.

In a few years, the landfills will be over-filled and past capacity. And, at some landfills, hazardous materials and contaminated soil also need treatment, Kusugak said.

There are federal regulations to deal with landfills, Kusugak said, but “if we don’t have the capacity then we can’t deal with them.”

“The communities are doing the best they can right now. The hamlets are concerned,” he added.

Another issue that came up at the mayors’ meeting was a need for more mental health services, and more suicide prevention work “especially since we had one [suicide] just a few days before the meeting,” Kusugak said.

Communities want to see more mental health service providers, he said, adding that there also needs to be better follow-up as part of suicide prevention measures.

Kivalliq mayors also discussed common issues with a delegation from Manitoba, which included Eric Robinson, the deputy premier of Manitoba.

At the top of their list: the future of the joint power projects and a Manitoba to Nunavut road proposal.

The 1,200-kilometre road would connect into the existing Manitoba highway system at Gillam, roughly 250 kilometres south of Churchill.

The Manitoba port town, plus Arviat, Whale Cove and Rankin Inlet, would connect to the highway by feeder routes.

More than 60 bridges would have to be built along the planned route, which has pushed estimates of the project’s cost to at least $1.2 billion.

That project could also go hand-in-hand with hydro-electric power projects in the Kivalliq, which could feed excess electricity south to Manitoba.

Also discussed was health care and “the strong link between Nunavut and Manitoba,” which provides health care to the region through the J.A. Hildes Northern Medical Unit at the University of Manitoba.